The Official Maple Syrup Thread 2011

[michiganfarmer]

Originally Posted by forerunner

finally.

Two weeks ago, or so, we got wind that the deep freeze was about to let go, so we tapped, and, it did. Then it stayed warm for a week.
Now the temps are acting more like late feb. We put out roughly 1500 taps.
We've made about ten gallons of syrup so far.
Both 60 gallon cooking vats are full and boiling vigorously, as we speak.
The 400 gallon bulk tank is about full. The boys are going out after breakfast to begin dumping overflowing buckets at grove #1. That should net another couple hundred gallons. The forecast is calling for freeze and thaw. This afternoon, with temps in the fifties, grove #2 should give three hundred gallons, plus.

Life is good.

fantastic!!

[michiganfarmer]

Originally Posted by Forerunner

Finally.

Two weeks ago, or so, we got wind that the deep freeze was about to let go, so we tapped, and, it did. Then it stayed warm for a week.
Now the temps are acting more like late Feb.

Life is good.

that happened to us a few years ago. It stayed warm for a week, then it stayed froze for 2 weeks, then warmed back up and went right into summer.

we got 6 or 8 days of run. It was pretty bad. It makes me nauseous just remembering it.

[JHuff8181]

Anyone in New Hampshire getting sap yet? Set a few taps out but nothing is running.

[Forerunner]

Originally Posted by michiganfarmer

that happened to us a few years ago. It stayed warm for a week, then it stayed froze for 2 weeks, then warmed back up and went right into summer.

we got 6 or 8 days of run. It was pretty bad. It makes me nauseous just remembering it.

That was us, last year...... less than two weeks, total. Made 18 gallons.
Year before that we made 113.
This year proves to be fascinating to see unfold, as always.
What I'm looking forward to is that first batch of nettle greens that come up about the middle of syruping. That's the best, first sign of spring for me, and the first of "eating out of the garden".

[cathleenc]

still haven't tapped here... temps don't look very promising either, other than today. Might wait another week.

[seedspreader]

Should be tapping this week... We'll see. Even though my temps are close, the snow pack is holding pretty well here.

Hopefully I'll be welding up the arch this week too.

[ca2devri]

Just tapped the first 10 trees. It's -3 C and sunny here and some of the trees were flowing a bit. It will be cold tomorrow, then a bit warmer Friday so I'm hoping for enough sap to boil a bit on Sunday.

Chris

[StephanieH]

Tonight will be a week since I tapped our 10 trees and we have right at 100 gallons. I am finishing off some in the kitchen right now and it smells so good!

[akaRach]

Thats it, I'm tired of waiting!

Supposed to be above 0 tomorrow with rain, and the trees are on the verge of running. So tomorrow, I'm boiling whatever there is darnit!

Then looks like just below freezing till next weekend and evening temperatures not much colder...

So, fingers crossed that I'll be sugaring during the kids march break (starts the 14th) and all that week. Haven't quite figured out how I'm going to work and sugar..oh wait!! Sleep in the shack of course!

Forerunner, I can't imagine the nettles coming up at the same time as the sap running!! This year I'm going to pay attention..to nettles and sap flavor at that time.

[Forerunner]

We've got nearly 50 gallons so far, either canned or finishing......and the nettles are 2-3 inches tall.

[michiganfarmer]

IM still working on tubing. Temps here arent warm enough yet. I was lucky enough to learn that dad still has one of his vacuum pumps from when we use to milk cows. Im gonna use that next year

[poppysfarm]

Thanks michiganfarmer and Sugarspinner. We made the big breakfast today and made the decision to go ahead and boil it down a little more. Our pancakes were just a little soggy. The weather had been too warm so we are going to pull the taps and boil what we have down a little more tomorrow. Just to see what works better, we will try canning some and freezing some.

[ca2devri]

Not too much sap yet, but with 40 taps, I had about 10 gallons or so by Sunday. I boiled it down on a small pan over a fire and got about 1 litre of syrup.

Weather looks ok for this week. Hopefully we'll have enough for a big boil by next weekend.

Some of my taps are leaking a bit. One of them is leaking a lot. I'm wondering if I tapped them in too hard and split them? Or maybe tapped them too cold? Not sure if there's much I can do about it now.

Chris

[akaRach]

Hey Chris!

I think we're very close, location wise. I'm over by Kemptville

I find that some trees (and certain taps on the same tree) run better then others. I'm sure you did everything correctly. The weather has been CRAPPY!

I have about 30 taps or so, and I've collected just over 5 gallons, so yours seems about right!

Looks like we're supposed to warm up this coming week..maybe? Like I said...crappy weather! I hope to be able to boil the week of march break. Would be fantastic if it was running gangbusters then. Might happen..

And about the tubes and vacuum...

I have some tress that are on a hill, slightly akward to get too. If I tapped these trees and tubed them instead dripping into a pail, would gravity pull the sap down the hill to a collection point or does it need the vacuum to move it?

[Bookwyrm]

Hi everyone.
We've just finished tapping our buckets. Got about 1180 taps on them. We're still working on the lines. Have 380 done on them and about 220 to go. We've been making syrup for about 17 years.

The weather's been pretty cruddy. We've only had one real run, and since we didn't gather it, it froze in the buckets, which is always lotso fun.

Doesn't really look like the weather's going to improve much in the near future either. It's going up to 8C, but it's not going to freeze, then dropping back down to highs of 2 and 3C.

[mossywyatt]

does anyone have any pics of there setup? This is my first year and we are doing it inside on the stove. I would like to make a wood stove evaporator. i just want to make a couple gallons a year. I'm in NY. thanks wyatt

[Forerunner]

If I was restricted to an inside wood stove operation, I'd procure a couple of those stainless restaurant pans, 2-4 inches deep, 9x14, or whatever they are.
The broader surface area exposed to the heat is what you're after, and stainless makes a real pretty finished product. Those same pans fit pretty much perfectly across two burners on a standard sized kitchen cook stove, gas or electric.
Whatever the first boiling temp of water is at your sea level, add 7 degrees for the temp of finished maple syrup. Thicker won't hurt, much..... thinner may not have enough sugar content to keep in the sealed jar.

[mossywyatt]

I was hoping to move outside and use a barrel wood stove. right now I am doing it inside in an enamel washtub and it cost almost 40$ in propane per gallon of syrup. The washtub is 8" deep is it faster to put in 6" of sap and boil down or 2" and slowly add more? thanks wyatt

[Forerunner]

I use vats 3' x 4.5' x 8" deep, and I find that if I keep them about half full, or less if I'm there to keep watch, and at a vigorously rolling boil, they do cook down much faster than when full. I set up with one tank above the other, constantly trickling cold sap into the upper, and the pre-heated upper sap into the lower, at a rate slow enough that the boil never stops.
My arch is quite home spun, and I've had a six inch chimney on it for years.
This year, I replaced that with eight inch, and, wow.... the heat, boil-rapidity and firewood consumption !!

Regardless of your configuration, if you make much syrup, you will cut lots of wood.
That alone is a good argument for having the operation deep in the woods, right among the maples..... You can clean up your timber to look like a park while accumulating BTUs for cooking sap.
Or..... better, have your teenage sons and daughters clean up and gather sap while you read or cat nap .

Here's a few photographic representations of what I'm talkin' about.
The arch and pans..... temporarily unemployed, but that's the only way we can see 'em or there'd be too much steam.





The sap shed...note the 400 gallon bulk tank to the right and my wood ash saving barrel to the far left.



.....and, the wood shed, adjacent. It's an old school bus that the boys stacked FULL of wood a couple years ago.
I'm through a fourth of that already this year. We've made roughly 50 gallons.
Season is at a stand still, but it's supposed to freeze pretty good tonight.

[JHuff8181]

We are expecting a lot of rain here Thursday and Friday. Does sap run when it rains, temps around 42? Will my buckets just fill with rain water? Should I pull them until the rain passes? The weather looks perfect from Saturday through Friday, lows 20's highs upper 40's. Thanks for the help.